By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Naptown All Pro “Out Tha Gate”
February 2, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana at Fountain Square Auditorium
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
There were multiple wrestling shows held in this venue over this Royal Rumble weekend, as I have previously reviewed Wrestling Revolver and Game Changer Wrestling events here. However, the crowd is quite small (maybe 50-75?), and the lights are low to hide the emptiness. (GCW left the lights on, as this room was packed.)
* I have seen lineups for NAP before but have never seen a show. It appears this is a promotion that focuses on promoting Black pro wrestlers. I haven’t seen a lot of wrestlers here before, but I tuned in for Shane Taylor, Calvin Tankman, and the Infantry.
* The promoter addressed the crowd to open the show. He said Camaro Jackson had to cancel. He started to ramble so I fast-forwarded.
1. Chase Holliday vs. Joseline Navarro (w/Isiah Broner) in an intergender match. I’ve seen Holliday in Black Label Pro; he’s quite rotund and much bigger than Joseline. She attacked at the bell. He hit a big boot to her jaw. They went to the floor and brawled. In the ring, he hit a hard back elbow at 6:30, then a Pedigree and a Tiger Driver (butterfly powerbomb) for a believable nearfall. Broner reached in and grabbed Holliday’s hair! She hit a dropkick and a flying crossbody block in the corner for the pin! Meh.
Joseline Navarro defeated Chase Holliday at 7:36.
2. Saturn Price vs. Gorgeous Martin. These two are new to me. These are two big guys. Saturn has a similar look to Holliday but not as heavy. Price has thick hair and a thick beard, and the commentators said this was a bonus match from wrestlers who showed up, hoping to get booked. Price hit a low blow. Price slammed him to the mat and got the pin. Adequate.
Saturn Price defeated Gorgeous Martin at 2:49.
3. “Nova NCMG” Noah Veil & Jeffrey John vs. “The Infantry” Carlie Bravo & Shawn Dean vs. Mackenzie Morgan & Rachel Armstrong for the NAP Tag Team Titles. I just saw Morgan for the first time a couple weeks ago in St. Louis-based Glory Pro, and I noted she reminds me of a young Jazz, as she has some clear muscle definition. Morgan and Bravo opened, and he easily backed her into a corner, and he tied up her left arm. The ultra-thin Noah got in (uses “they/them” pronouns) and locked up with Dean, and Noah hit a dropkick. The tiny Rachel (as I noted a couple days ago, she’s 5’0″ and maybe 115 pounds) traded armdrags with Veil. Bravo hit a suplex, and he hit some jab punches on Veil.
The Infantry worked together to beat up Veil. Noah finally hit a running knee at 9:30. Jeffrey got a hot tag and entered for the first time and hit a double bulldog. Mackenzie got in at 11:00 and hit some punches on Bravo, but Carlie dropped her with one punch to the jaw. The Infantry now began working over Morgan. Bravo and Morgan hit stereo clotheslines and were both down at 14:30. Rachel got a hot tag and began punching all the opponents. She hit a flip dive to the floor on all four. In the ring, she hit a Sliced Bread on Carlie for a nearfall. The Infantry hit their Mafia Kick-and-Russian Leg Sweep combo on Veil for a nearfall at 18:00.
Jeffrey hit a top-rope stunner. Rachel hit a DDT on Jeffrey. Bravo hit a Shellshock twisting faceplant. Noah hit a DDT on Morgan. Dean hit a backbreaker over his knee on Veil. The Infantry hit a team doublestomp on Veil for a nearfall. The Infantry again hit the Mafia Kick-and-Russian Leg Sweep combo on Veil and this time got the pin! New champs! A bit long and meandering; the assault on the women was a bit much for me.
Carlie Bravo & Shawn Dean defeated Noah Veil & Jeffrey John and Mackenzie Morgan & Rachel Armstrong to win the NAP Tag Team Titles at 20:36.
* Shane Taylor came out of the back and celebrated with the Infantry. The commentators were shocked to see him, as he apparently hasn’t been used here before. He ripped on Indianapolis, and he issued an open challenge for a match… right now!
4. Shane Taylor vs. Trey Shaw. I don’t think I’ve seen Shaw; he has long dreadlocks and reminds me of Booker T when he had hair that long. Obviously, Taylor has the clear size advantage, and he easily shoved Trey to the mat. They fought into the crowd and I can’t see a thing because the action was in the shadows. In the ring, Taylor hit a bodyslam for a nearfall at 4:00. He hit some chops and kept Trey grounded. Taylor hit a splash to the mat for a nearfall at 6:30, and Shane was in disbelief he didn’t win there. Shane clocked him with a punch to the jaw and hit a package piledriver for the pin. The commentators noted how it was a dominant victory for Shane.
Shane Taylor defeated Trey Shaw at 8:09.
5. Kevin Noire vs. Nick Gage vs. Kavron Kanyon in a three-way. I don’t know Kanyon or Nore. Kavon is bigger and has a shoulder brace on. The promoter walked up to a “fan” named Kevin and told him to get in the ring because they needed a match. The bell rang… but then Nick Gage got in the ring! He looks particularly thin today. Like, he’s lost a lot of weight in two months. (Is he well?) He got on the mic and demanded this be a three-way. Being as no punches were thrown, I restarted my stopwatch with the new bell. Gage hit a DDT on Kevin the fan, who rolled to the floor, and Gage brawled with Kavon. Gage hit a suplex on the floor on Kanyon. Kevin tried a dive through the ropes, but Gage whipped Kevin into the ring post, and all three continued to fight at ringside. In the ring, Kanyon hit a springboard stunner for a nearfall. Gage hit a piledriver and pinned Kevin the fan. This wasn’t good, but it sure is a surprise to see Gage here.
Nick Gage defeated Kevin Noire and Kavron Kanyon in a three-way at 4:24.
6. A scramble. Even IWTV doesn’t bother to list the competitors in this one on their website. I am counting 11 in the ring, and an announcer immediately said the same thing. I recognized the super-scrawny Anakin Murphy from shows I’ve seen from St. Louis to Tennessee. We have no onscreen graphics so I’ll guess on some spellings. Jacky Thad fought Murphy. Someone did an Asai Moonsault onto a pile of guys on the floor at 3:00. Terry Yaki got a rollup for a nearfall; he’s a regular in the Atlanta area. A heavy white kid named Davis hit a powerbomb. Jay Lucas hit a package piledriver; he’s been on some recent GCW shows. Keelan Cole, a thin black man, hit a corkscrew dive to the floor on everyone at 6:00. Dylan Cole, a white man, kicked Keelan, as the commentator noted these two “aren’t related.” Dylan Cole hit a superplex on Murphy, but Murphy got a rollup upon landing for the pin. Adequate.
Anakin Murphy won an 11-man scramble at 7:45.
7. Isaiah Broner vs. Leon Ruffin for the NAP Title. I haven’t seen Cleveland-based AIW since they left Triller+, but Broner is one of the stars there, and I’ve compared him to Ahmed Johnson or Ezekial Jackson in past reviews. Point being, he has a significant size advantage on the scrawny former NXT wrestler Ruffin. Ruffin did some misdirection moves to avoid tying up, and he hit a dropkick. On the floor, he hit a huracanrana that sent Broner into the ring post. Broner hit some blows on the floor and some loud chops. “These are hands you don’t want to catch,” a commentator said of Broner.
In the ring, Broner tossed around Ruffin and hit some punches. This was as one-sided as it should be. Ruffin hit a frogsplash for a nearfall at 7:30. Broner hit a running buttbump in the corner and an F5 Slam for the pin. Blah. That was an all-out squash (as it really should have been!) but just not what I’d put in the semi-main event. See my thoughts below; there had to be a better use on this show for a talent like Broner.
Isaiah Broner defeated Leon Ruffin to retain the NAP title at 8:41.
8. Josh Crane vs. Calvin Tankman. I don’t know Crane; he’s white with a short beard and he wore a black singlet with purple lining and he’s comparable to Tim Thatcher. They brawled at the bell, and Crane hit a back suplex. Tankman hit a back suplex and a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall at 1:00! Crane hit some chops; Calvin fired back with his own chops, and Calvin hit a bodyslam, then a splash to the mat for a nearfall. They went to the floor, where Calvin slammed Crane’s back into the ring frame at 3:30. Crane slammed Tankman’s hand against the ring post, then he stomped on the hand.
They got in the ring and traded chops. Calvin hit a backbreaker over his knee and a clothesline for a nearfall at 9:30. Crane hit a forearm strike to the back of the head, then a running clothesline at 11:30. Crane applied a Fujiwara Armbar; Calvin was near the ropes but couldn’t reach them, and he tapped out! I didn’t see that coming! The commentators were equally shocked. Good match and easily best of the night.
Josh Crane defeated Calvin Tankman at 12:00 even.
Final Thoughts: A frustrating show, largely because they have the pieces here to put on a good event. You have Tankman, Broner, and Shane Taylor here… if I was booking with this roster, I would have made a singles match from any combination of those three and made that my headliner. Jay Lucas and Terry Yaki are both really good — the Atlanta AEW crowd was chanting Yaki’s name on Wednesday! — and I would have given them a singles match rather than roll them into that scramble, and scrapped some of the other matches. I would have put Armstrong vs. Morgan, and have Dean and Bravo in a regular tag match. The Infantry’s violence toward the women here really didn’t work for me.
I choose my words carefully in describing the quality of a match. While I don’t do star ratings anymore, I’ll note that only the main event earned a “good match” from me. I’d loosely say a “good match” would be between 2.25 to 2.75 stars (without settling on where it falls in that window.) I wouldn’t say anything else reached a “good match” level. So while there are a lot of good wrestlers here, I would have used many of them differently and put them in a position to have a “good match.”
I truly hope Nick Gage is healthy and clean. I have my concerns based on what I saw here, but I hope I am wrong. That drop in size is rather alarming.
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